Local Gone Missing(16)

“I remember the first time I saw it—it blew my mind,” Pauline was trilling. “It’d been empty for a while but it just needed some TLC.”

“It might have been kinder to put the whole place out of its misery,” Ronnie murmured, but if Pauline heard, she ignored it.

Living in denial might have been the only way for her to cope, Elise supposed. The alternative was too devastating. They must have plowed all their money into it.

“It definitely needs some work,” Pauline said when the silence grew. “But that was reflected in the price. It’s got a resident ghost and a grand salon.” She threw open double doors like a telly-makeover-show reveal and Elise tripped over a plastic bucket catching drips from the ceiling. “The pipework still needs finishing. The plumber let us down,” Pauline muttered, guiding them past another three containers of varying size.

“Ted’s got some old buckets in his shed you can have,” Ronnie said, but Pauline was on a roll.

“Look, you can see the Isle of Wight! I love it.”

“And does Charlie feel the same way?” Elise asked.

“Oh, Charlie!” she muttered. “He kept on about the roof and how long it’d been on the market. He wanted to buy a smaller place but I won him over.” And she twirled a lock of dyed hair.

“How old is he?”

“What? Oh, seventy-four next month. Ninth of the ninth . . .”

“What did he do before you retired down here?”

“Goodness, this is beginning to feel like a cross-examination.” Pauline laughed uncertainly. “He made his money with regeneration projects in west London, as far as I know. We had a lovely home when we got married. And we had such plans—we were going to put a cinema and sauna in the basement but first the neighbors objected—and then there was the business about the money.”

“What business?” Elise said.

“I think that’s enough personal questions, don’t you?” Pauline snapped. “That’s all ancient history. It was a silly misunderstanding that was put right.”

Elise could hear the red flags unfurling and snapping in the sea breeze.





Eleven


SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 2019





Dee


Liam can’t sit still this lunchtime. He keeps going out to his van for something and coming back empty-handed. He’s obviously secretly checking his phone.

“For goodness’ sake, stop it!” I shout when he gets up again. “You’re driving me mad. I thought you had work to do?”

“It’s Saturday!”

“Well, some of us are still working. Who are you texting?”

“What do you mean? No one.” He holds up his hands to show they’re empty.

“Every time you go outside, I mean. Who is it?”

“No one.”

And he goes quiet again. He can sulk for days when he feels like it and I try to move us on.

“Have you heard Charlie Perry has gone missing?” I say, and Liam looks out the window.

“Has he? When?” he mutters.

“Last night. Pauline says she didn’t hear him come home.”

“She must have done, the state he was in.”

“He looked awful last night, didn’t he?”

“Yeah. I expect she’s pleased he’s gone off. She’s always saying he’s a waste of space, isn’t she?”

“I know. But she’s not happy. She was furious when I was up there this morning. She’s told the police he’s missing.”

“Seriously?” Liam snaps. “Bit of an overreaction, isn’t it?”

“I suppose. But maybe she really is worried? I don’t know. Did you talk to him last night? You said you were going to the other day.”

“Did I?”

He knows he did. The rent is due at the end of the month and he’s changed the password on his business account.

“About his unpaid bill, Liam. It’s been months since you finished the work.”

Liam shook his head. “No. He was too pissed. You saw what he was like.”

“Right. So what are we going to do? Will we be okay?”

“What? ’Course we will. I’ve got some work coming up, so stop nagging,” he says. “You are doing my head in.”

“I was just asking.”

“Well, don’t.”

“But we need to talk about money, love. About what we’re going to do long term, if your work doesn’t pick up. My cleaning money won’t be nearly enough to keep us afloat.”

“Leave it alone, Dee. It’ll be okay. Dave wants me to do a big job at the pub—he’s putting in an outside bar and renewing all the plumbing upstairs. Look, I’ll talk to him today.”

“You can’t—he’ll be at the hospital. Haven’t you heard anything from him about how Ade and Tracy are?”

“No.” He’s still not looking at me.

“Tracy’s dad and his friends will string up whoever gave them the drugs. They attacked Pete Diamond in front of the police this morning.”

“Bloody hell!” he says too loudly. “Look, I’m taking the dog out.”